


Shore Leave

by Alys_Brauer



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Absolute fluff, Fluff, M/M, and bonding, and cute things, with family funtimes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-07
Updated: 2016-08-21
Packaged: 2018-07-29 21:07:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7699387
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alys_Brauer/pseuds/Alys_Brauer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's the first time that Leonard brings Jim home with him to meet his daughter Joanna. Cute things happen, and family bonding stuff with vacations.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Do you think she’ll like me, Bones?”

The question comes out of nowhere, and it takes Leonard a moment to realize, despite the use of that God awful nickname he hasn’t managed to shake in the five years he’s known Jim Kirk, that the man beside him is, in fact, talking to him.

“Who?” Leonard manages to force the question out around gritted teeth. He’s rather more focused on the potential of his impending death, than anything Jim might be saying to him. Three years of Starfleet training, the most harrowing, death-defying maiden voyage in all human history, and a year exploratory mission followed by _another_ death-defying mission, and Leonard still can’t shake the feeling that he’s going to die on this shuttle.

Intellectually, he knows a phobia is irrational, but that irrationality is precisely why he can’t stop his mind from running through all the worst-case scenarios with the rising certainty that this time, _this_ time for _sure_ , it’s going to happen to him. This is the shuttle ride where his blood will boil, when his eyes will burst because-

A warm hand covers his own clammy one where it rests, white knuckled, on the straps of the harness keeping him in place, and manages to scatter Leonard’s thoughts completely. Jim’s thumb lightly rubs the back of Leonard’s hand, and his pounding pulse slowly starts to normalize, the warmth of the small gesture spreads slowly through him.

“You okay there, Bones?” Jim asks softly, clearly trying to avoid drawing the unwanted attention of their fellow passengers.

Leonard shoots Jim an incredulous look. “Course I’m not okay. I’m in a flying metal death can.”

Jim’s eyes light up, no surprise there, and he doesn’t even _try_ to suppress his chuckle.

It’s a very good thing that Leonard likes that chuckle, it eases a tightness in his chest. It’s an even better thing that Jim doesn’t remove his hand, his thumb still rubbing soothingly over the back of Leonard’s hand, otherwise he might have been tempted to do something drastic to remove that overly amused smirk dancing across Jim’s lips.

There is absolutely nothing amusing about the very real possibility of engine failure resulting in a horrific freefall toward the surface far, far, _far_ , below them.

“You just spent a year in space,” Jim reminds him rather unnecessarily.

Like he’s really going to forget that! Twelve of the most horrifying months he’s ever experienced, it felt like his heart had been permanently in his throat, and it was a miracle any of them had survived long enough to face down that genetically engineered madman.

“Not to mention the fact that you were on the _Enterprise_  both times that she was nearly reduced to rubble.”

Leonard shivers at the memory. The first time had been a very near miss indeed. And the second- “Yeah well,” Leonard’s stomach rises to his throat at the reminder of their exceptionally close calls while in the depths of space. Jim’s hadn’t even been a close call! He’d actually- “You’re not captaining this bucket of bolts, Darling. We’re both at the mercy of whatever madman is at the wheel of this thing.”

He realizes what he’s said too late. A blinding smile is blooming right before his eyes as Jim stares at him in open wonder. “Why, Bones,” Jim practically purrs in delight.

God help him! Him and his big mouth. Why’d he have to go and say a thing like that? Jim’s ego is already big enough that there’s a very real possibility that his head will actually explode if it gets any bigger.

“Are you saying that you trust me, and you only feel safe if I’m at the helm?”

“No. I didn’t say that, Jim,” Leonard says sharply. They’ll be no living with Jim for at least a month now, probably longer since they’ll be returning to the ship within that month.

“Yes you did! I think that’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“Don’t lie,” Leonard snaps, but there’s less heat in his voice now. “And don’t go talking nonsense. That’s not what I said, so you can go on and let a little air out of that over-inflated ego of yours now. It’s not good for the health of either of us.” Even as he speaks, a small smile pulls at the corners of Leondard’s mouth, and the inevitable crush of anxiety he feels whenever his feet leave solid ground lightens to a more manageable level.

As if sensing this, Jim’s smile softens into something warm, all traces of teasing gone. “So,” he says, settling back in his seat. Jim’s hand slips from Leonard’s to rest on Leonard’s thigh instead, his thumb resuming its idle stroking. “Do you think she’ll like me? Joanna that is, I don’t really care what your ex-wife thinks of me, clearly her judgment is more than a little off if she let you go.”

Leonard laughs  softly, shaking his head a little. “Can’t rightly say, Darling,” he drawls, focusing on Jim’s hand to keep any lingering fear at bay. “I’m a doctor, not a psychic.” And honestly, Leonard has no idea how his daughter is going to react to _him_ , never mind Jim. At least it’s only been a year this time, and she’s older now, so it won’t be like he’ll have to get to know her all over again. “Can’t see why not, your about the same age mentally. You should get on great.”

As Jim begins to splutter in protest, Leonard smiles and feels the last traces of his anxiety melt away with his laughter at Jim’s righteous indignation.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah! Thanks for all the lovely comments so far! I have a few chapters written so I'm going to try to update every week! Hope you all enjoy,

Joanna has her father’s eyes - it’s the first thing Jim notices when they’re introduced. However, where Bones’ eyes are a little cynical, Joanna’s are bright and soft; though they both carry the same light of curiosity. When Joanna tilts her head and looks at him, it’s easy to see a reflection of her father shining through; it’s the same look that Bones wears when he’s trying to figure out a medical mystery, or trying to divine what’s in Jim’s mind – which he’s gotten very good at actually.

“Hello, Joanna,” Jim tries for easy, but the greeting comes out a little over bright. He winces at himself, and tries to cover it up by offering her his hand, well, more like he shoves his hand at her.

This is not going well.

Joanna tilts her head the other way, those eyes that are at once familiar and not, meet  Jim’s, and he has the distinct impression that _she’s_ trying to read his mind.

They should have waited to do this. The half hysterical thought pops into Jim’s mind, and he can just _see_ Bones’ answering eyebrow. Okay, so it’s been three years since they started dating. Sure it sucks that he can’t see Bones during the holidays they have on Earth because Bones, understandably, wants to spend them with his daughter. But they still should have waited. Clearly this is too soon for the whole ‘meeting the dad’s partner’ thing.

He understands, he knows.

“I don’t like you.”

The statement is clear, to the point, and like a foot directly to his gut.

Jim’s eyes snap up to Bones, who is actually across the street, talking to his ex. About what, he has no idea, but it doesn’t look pleasant. Bones left Joanna with him, trusted his daughter with him-

Or this is all some clever plot on Bones’ part to force Jim and Joanna to spend some time together without him around so they could get a proper feel for the other. Great plan, in theory. It’d be better if Bones had tried this _after_ he’d been around to play adjudicator for a bit first, because this is not going well.

His eyes flick back down to the girl still staring at him with Bones’ eyes, her arms crossed over her chest in a way that very much reminds Jim of Bones’ _‘you’re an idiot I can’t believe you’ve done something this stupid again_’ stance.

Shit he’s in trouble now.

James T. Kirk; starship captain; hero; savior of the world – twice!; tactical genius. And he’s being stared down by a miniature, female, version of his committed boyfriend and…Shit! He should have brought a gift, no matter what Bones said about bribing. Bribing children is not cheating, especially if you need them to like you because you have every intention of marrying their father just as soon as you can convince said father that marriage is not an institution created by the devil himself to cause the most amount of suffering with no chance of escape without harm…

Yeah…that bits going to take some work.

So is the first part as well it seems.

“You’re stealing my pa away,” Joanna continues, her eyes narrowing in a way that doesn’t resemble Bones in the slightest, but sends shivers down Jim’s spine.

Must have got it from her mother then.

“What?” Jim asks intelligently, staring down at the child, his mind kicking into overdrive. Stealing her pa? Okay, well, he guesses he can understand that assumption. A parent with a new partner was bound to be hard on a kid, especially a kid who still had both parents. Joanna had probably hoped, in some part of her heart, that one day he parents would get back together and they’d be a real family again.

Hell, _Jim’s_ had that dream, and he knows it’s absolutely impossible.

“I won’t let you have him.” Joanna states firmly.

“I don’t want to take him away, Jo,” Jim speaks up in his defense, watching the girl carefully. He’s pretty sure he’s got her number, now all he has to do is figure out a tactic to win her over to his side.

Joanna tilts her head again, raising a hand to her mouth.

Jim doesn’t blink. You’re not supposed to blink right? You’re not supposed to blink or that shows weakness- wait, no. That’s wild animals, not children.

Fuck.

Well it’s too late now. Jim continues on with his ‘not blinking’ strategy, trying to convey with his eyes that he’s really no threat at all to Joanna’s relationship with her father.

“Then why are you here? Papa’s never brought anyone along with him before. So you must be special. You’re not allowed to be more special than me.”

Smart kid.  

He should have prepared better for this.

“Jo,” Jim drops to his knees in front of the girl, a careful smile spreading across his lips.

Joanna only scowls at him. “My name’s _Joanna_ ,” she responds pointedly.

“Jo,” Jim continues. He’s a Captain for crying out loud! He refuses to be intimidated by a child – even a child of Bones. “We’re both special to Bones, your papa, in our very own ways. But I can promise you, you’re the most special to him.”

“Don’t lie. Mama says papa is up in space with you all the time, and I only get to see him when he comes to Earth. If I’m the most special, then why are you here too, taking up the only time I get to see papa.” There’s a little tremble in her voice now, and her eyes are a little brighter than they were before.

Oh. _Oh. OH!_ So _that’s_ what it is.

Now Jim smiles brightly. Reaching out, he lays his hands gently on Joanna’s shoulders, and meets her eyes. “Look, Jo – I’m gonna keep calling you Jo. I’m going to be straight with you okay?”

Joanna nods, clenching her jaw – probably to stop herself from crying.

“Okay, Jo. Here’s the deal. I’m not going to take any time away from you and your papa. In fact,” Jim pauses for dramatic effect, his smile growing. “In fact, I asked to come this time, and I had to work hard to convince your papa. But the reason I asked, was so that I could meet you and tell you all about the adventures your papa gets to up in space. He doesn’t tell you much does he?”

Joanna shakes her head emphatically, her eyes softening and looking less teary.

“So how about this: how about I promise to keep a special eye on your papa from now on, and report everything back to you.”

There’s that considering look again, and Jim is fairly certain he’s got this now.

He’s not sure where he comes up with this stuff, but damn he’s good! No wonder they call him a tactical genius.

“Everything?” Joanna asks carefully. “Promise?”

“I promise,” Jim says earnestly. Placing his hand over his heart, Jim nods solemnly.

At last Joanna smiles. A true, bright smile that makes Jim’s heart melt.

Joanna climbs up onto the park bench that’s near them, squirms until she’s settled, and then pins Jim with those eyes again. “Okay. Start now.”

Chuckling, Jim stands and sits facing her. “Well…let’s see. There was this time on Capella IV-“


	3. Chapter 3

Joanna does seem to like Jim, or at the very least, she’s curious about him - he hopes. Okay, it might not have been the best idea to leave her and Jim at the park across the street without figuring out how the two will get along- But honestly! Trial by fire has always worked in the past, this is probably the best way to go about it.

But Leonard _really_ need Joanna distracted while he attempts to survive another round with his ex, and forcing those two to figure out how to get along is certainly one way of achieving that.

“I’ll need the addresses of where you’re planning on going, and how long you’ll be staying in each place, along with a comm I can reach you at.”

I seems Joscelyn has adopted a new strategy, instead of merely trying to spit acid in his eyes, she’s now attempting to rip Leonard’s throat out with her teeth. It’s not a particularly pleasant change of tactic.

At least lawyers aren’t involved this time.

“If there are any changes to your plans, you’ll have to give me at least twenty-four hours notice.”

Leonard stares at his ex-wife in clear disbelief. Hell, she’d always been bad, but this is a new level of low even for her. “Would you just like to implant me with a tracking chip, Joscelyn? It’d be easier,” Leonard drawls sarcastically.

Joscelyn shoots him a dark look. “It’s not you I don’t trust Leonard.”

And there it is. It’s not like they hadn’t discussed this exact thing for the entire last month of his tour. It’s not like they hadn’t discussed it with Joanna herself. It’s not like Joscelyn hadn’t demanded a full record check of the man that Leonard was daring to bring into their daughter’s life.

Joscelyn never had been good at letting things go, even when she was the one who’d walked away first.

“You have my comm number, our general plan, and my promise that we’re not going off planet,” he says softly. Once Leonard would have gotten angry at the display, but now he just feels tired of the whole damn thing. He turns his head so he can see where Jim is sitting on a park bench, telling a thoroughly engrossed Joanna some sort of story, complete with wild hand motions. There’s a brief moment of concern, wondering what in the hell Jim is telling his daughter, but, as if he can feel Leonard’s gaze, Jim’s eyes flick up and he flashes a reassuring smile at Leonard.

He should know better by now, but as always, the combination of Jim’s brilliant baby blues and his warm grin makes Leonard melt, even as his pulse quickens, chasing away the heavy exhaustion that Joscelyn always somehow managed to make him feel.

“Leonard!”

God forgive him, but Leonard flinches at the familiar sharp tone.

Two years ago, he probably would have folded and given Joscelyn whatever the hell she wanted, just to get her off his back. However, the sight of Joanna giggling at something Jim’s said gives leonard a weapon he hasn’t had in a damn like time: hope for his own happiness.

“Excuse me, Joscelyn, we’ve got a rental to pick up.”

He doesn’t wait to see Joscelyn’s expression. For once, he’s going to have the last word. Turning his back, Leonard starts to make his way over to his daughter and his boyfriend. His pace doesn’t slow when Joscelyn begins to splutter, and his steps don’t falter when she snarls his name again. Leonard had loved her once, God only knows if she’d ever really loved him, but that was a long time ago now, and he has more important things to spend his time on.

Jim’s eyes follow Leonard as he crosses the street and approaches him and Joanna. He grins, his eyes sparkling with some sort of mischief that Leonard can’t quite place.

“So we enter the cave, and there’s your dad holding this baby. He goes over to Spock and lets him hold the little guy, but immediately starts nagging him about how he’s doing it all wrong!” Joanna giggles. “Honestly, I don’t think Spock even _wanted_ to hold the baby, but your dad plopped it right into his arms anyway.”

Dear Lord no! Leonard finally realizes what story Jim is telling and groans. This is not appropriate material for Jim to be sharing with Leonard’s _actual_ child.

Jim’s eyes are dancing now; he knows exactly what he’s doing!

“And then she says: ‘McCoy, bring our child.’”

“What!?” Joanna squeals, and Leonard winces.

Here it comes.

“Well now,” Leonard speaks up at last. Joanna spins to face him, her mouth flapping open wide enough to catch a fistful of flies. Behind her, Jim bursts into cackles, and all Leonard can do is shake his head.

At least they’re getting along. He’d been half afraid that Joanna would stonewall Jim out of principle alone - she’d already told him that she had decided not to like Jim because he was stealing her papa away, which is utter nonsense.

“I have a baby brother!?” Joanna demands.

Leonard quirks an eyebrow at his daughter. “It’s not as simple as all that. In fact, no, I was just trying to-”

“Does ma know?” Joanna cuts him off, eyes bright with excitement. “Will you ever bring him to visit? Can I go to visit him?”

First, Leonard winces - just the thought of Joscelyn finding out, never mind that the kid’s not even his! - then he sighs, and then he shoots a murderous glare at the still cackling Jim. He’s going to pay for this.

“No. Your mother…” he shakes his head, trying to figure out how he should phrase this in a way she’ll understand, and hopefully retain. “This is our secret, Sweetheart,” he tries. “Just between me, you, and Jim. All right?”

Joanna gives him a look that she has to have learned from her mother - thought it’s more curious than calculating. After a moment, she smiles and nods decisively. “All right, papa. Our special secret!”

Leonard smiles and relaxes. “Well, now that that’s all settled, where’s my hug at, Little Lady?” He kneels down and holds his arms open for her.

Giggling, Joanna climbs down from the bench and throws herself into his arms. Leonard gives an exaggerated grunt, then folds her into his arms, pressing his face into her hair.

God he’s missed her. It’s only been just over a year, but he’s already missed so much, and their next assignment is five years! Somehow he doubts that Joscelyn will make a space jaunt just so Leonard can see his daughter.

Small arms wrap tightly around his neck, and Leonard sighs softly.

“That’s my Sweet Georgia Peach,” he murmurs. Lifting his eyes, Leonard finds Jim watching them with an unreadable expression on his face.

He lifts both his eyebrows in silent query, but Jim simply shakes his head and offers Leonard a lopsided grin.

Well, they’ll need to talk about _that_ later. For now though-

Wrapping both his arms around Joanna’s waist, Leonard pushes himself to his feet, holding his daughter tightly as she wraps her legs around his waist. She’s probably too old for him to be carrying around, but he’ll be damned if he lets that stop him from doing what he wants with the little time that he has with her.

“Right, we ready then?” he asks, looking from Joanna over to Jim who’s shoved his hands as deep into his pockets as they can go.

“Where are we going?” Joanna asks excitedly.

Jim pulls a hand out of his pocket, and picks up Joanna’s little suitcase, following along just a step behind as they start to walk.

“It’s a surprise,” Leonard answers seriously.

Joanna pouts, and dear Lord! He’s going to be in serious trouble in the future.

“Maybe you should try asking Jim,” he suggests in a carrying whisper.

Nodding, Joanna squirms in Leonard’s arms until he stops and lets her slide to the ground. Immediately, she reaches up and grabs his hand, then tugs on Jim’s sleeve to get at the hand still buried in his pocket with her other hand. “Hey, Jim,” she says sweetly, flashing him her most adorable smile. “Do _you_ know where we’re going?”

Pulling his hand out of his pocket, Jim smiles down at Joanna as she takes it.

Leonard can’t help but smile as well.

“Your dad swore me to secrecy,” Jim says in mock dismay.

Joanna’s smile turns into a pout, and Jim chuckles softly. “Well,” he says carefully. “He didn’t make me swear not to give you hints!” Jim declares with a wink. “So let’s see, what are some good hints? Um...Your gran, horses, a lake, and...a cabin!”

Joanna squeals in excitement, squeezing Leonard’s, and he can assume, Jim’s hand as she starts to jump up and down.

“Those are not hints Jim,” he scolds good-naturedly, releasing Joanna’s hand as she skips ahead, urging them both to move faster. “You outright told her where we’re going in single syllables.”

“How was I supposed to resist those eyes, Bones? They’re clearly a weapon!”

Leonard chuckles, and leans to wrap an arm around Jim’s waist and tug him closer. Jim turns his head toward him, and Leonard presses a chaste kiss to his lips, then pulls back to meet his eyes with a warm smile. “Not nearly as dangerous as yours, my darlin’.”


End file.
